


Praise the restless beds

by Angelicasdean



Series: Tumblr prompts [1]
Category: Red Dead Redemption (Video Games)
Genre: Angst and Hurt/Comfort, Arthur Whump, Fever, M/M, Post Blessed are the Peacemakers, Sickfic, charles is concerned
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-11-25
Updated: 2019-11-25
Packaged: 2021-02-18 11:36:29
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 412
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21560536
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Angelicasdean/pseuds/Angelicasdean
Summary: rcris123 asked:Keeping a bedside vigil so they aren’t alone - post blessed are the peacemakers maybe??? (Charthur if you want to!)
Relationships: Arthur Morgan/Charles Smith
Series: Tumblr prompts [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1565209
Comments: 1
Kudos: 101





	Praise the restless beds

The tent was stuffy, even with the back of it open and letting in the chilly night air. 

The stench of illness stuck to the cloth heavily, and Charles wanted nothing other than to breathe some fresh air… but Arthur had asked him to stay. Asked _for_ him, and there’s nothing more important than that for now.

Fever still high, still half-delirious; Arthur’s hand is wrapped around his. Still drowning in his own fears, unseeing, Arthur is whispering pleas to himself as Charles tries to remain calm. 

Internally, Charles was well over his head on how to deal with this. Arthur was many things, but fearful wasn’t one of them. The fever had crumbled his walls, and whatever those O’driscolls did to him had broken him. This was a moment where Arthur _needed_ someone but there was no way of reaching him.

Hosea had pumped him full of painkillers, and when the pain had almost driven Arthur into hysteria, they resorted to morphine. And not where he was, unseeing, unhearing and afraid of a threat that wasn’t here.

Charles was ready to slaughter every O’driscoll that dared step a foot on earth, whether or not they laid a hand on Arthur. 

“Please…” Arthur croaked, hand squeezing Charles’ for a moment. Charles’ only response was to place a gentle hand on Arthur’s forehead, checking his temperature for the hundredth time. 

“You’re safe, Arthur,” Charles whispers, as close as he can get to Arthur’s ear. A soft choked whimper, Charles sighs, leans back and tightens his hold on Arthur’s hand. 

“Charles?” Arthur whispers, and Charles can feel his ears perk up, sitting straight in his chair and leaning in close, “Charles?” Arthur repeats, and Charles scrambles to place his free hand across Arthur’s chest. 

He flinches under the touch, Charles feeling his heart falter but hope quickly resurfaces when Arthur brings up his other hand to lay it on top of Charles’.

“You’re home, Arthur. You made it,” Charles reassures, and Arthur blinks at the tent ceiling, head slowly turning towards the sound of his voice.

“Don’t make me go back, don’t let me go,” Arthur croaks, and Charles frowns, leaving his chair entirely to kneel by Arthur, almost hugging him entirely.

“You’ll never go back there, sweetheart, you’re safe now. You’re with us,” Charles whispers, and Arthur’s eyes close with a flutter of his eyelashes.

“Don’t leave me,” Arthur says, and Charles tightens his hold on Arthur, “please,” he adds.

“Never,” Charles promises. 

**Author's Note:**

> tumblr is: samwrittenbysam!!


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